Goblin Town
"When all the magic has left the world, goblins will still persist." This is a Platinum Encounter Card in Hand of Fate 2. Event Following the goblin's instructions, you walk through snow, then marsh, then under an old oak tree. You crawl through dirt tunnels lit by shafts of sunlight, until you eventually emerge on a paved road, deep underground. Up ahead, you see a bright green glow. You are no longer alone. Goblins scurry from adjoining tunnels and greet you on the path. You are swept along with the crowd until the tunnel broadens into a vast cavern encapsulating a small city - Goblin Town! Green lanterns cast the streets in a murk light. Crowds of goblins go about their business while hooded figures lead rodent-like beasts of burden to market. In the distance, a mountain of gold glitters enticingly. Lines of goblins are arrayed around it like spokes of a wheel. 1) Visit the gold mountain. :You join one of the long queue of goblins waiting patiently for their gold. :If the current companion is Hubie: ::Hubie lines up behind you with his raggedy coin bag ready. "I'm going to invest in broiled scrod." :A dusty goblin wearing a pointy hat peers down at you from a tall bureau. :His wrinkled hand clutches a quill over a scroll of paper so long that it cascades off his counter and onto the ground. "Name?" :On the first attempt: ::The ancient goblin slowly scratches your name into the parchment before scooping some of the gold into your waiting haversack with a long, giant spoon. ::The player draws 4 Gold Gain Cards. :On subsequent attempts: ::He looks down at his list. "Fie! You've already taken your gold today. Humans are all the same - greedy." 2) Explore Goblin Town. :Chance Cards Gambit (1 Success, 2 Failure, 1 Huge Failure) (Hard) :Huge Success (only possible with Eternal Hope) ::As you wander the streets admiring the lopsided architecture, somebody painfully taps your shoulder with a wooden staff. ::You turn to see a goblin, badly disguised as a human, smiling up at you. He looks vaguely familiar. ::"My name is Mister Lionel! Watch out!" The goblin flings something solid and metal at your head, but you duck just in time. ::The player draws 1 Shield Equipment Card. ::You attempt to chastise your assailant but the goblin has already vanished into the crowded market. :Success ::If Hubie is the current Companion: :::In a strange turn of events, you join up with Hubie as he hefts a goat into the air. It bleats in terror. "Quickly, prepare the bucket!" :::It's some time before the goat is returned to its rightful owner, who is grateful for your help. ::Otherwise: :::An ancient goblin, wrinkled as a prune, is selling an array of teas down by the bank of the pungent river that runs through the town. :::He places a bag in your hand and shakes his little head when you offer payment. "I am happy knowing that the tea will either strengthen you greatly, or kill you." ::The player draws 1 Food Gain Card. :Failure :* The hooded figures lead their rat-beasts silently through the crowds of chatty goblins. The hoods obscure all but the creatures' grey skin and narrow mouths. :* The crowded buildings of goblin town are stacked haphazardly on top of one another. Little pairs of pants hang from washing lines strung overhead. :* The cavern is so vast that it is impossible to gauge the height of the city's great stone ceiling. A passing goblin notices your gaze. "Wonderful isn't it? A great burrowing serpent ate out the earth on Goblin King's command." :* If it weren't for their wide variety of hats, you'd struggle to tell one goblin from another. You wonder whether they ever feel the same way. :* A friendly goblin invites you into his home for some bitter tea and sugar cubes. You spend a pleasant afternoon listening to him recite poems about apples. : :Huge Failure ::"Out of the way! Out of the way!" Two goblins carrying a towering cake come rushing through the street toward you! ::You leap out of the way, twisting your ankle on a crooked cobblestone. ::The player draws a Life Pain Card. :Suddenly, urgent horns blare in alarm throughout the city, reverberating off the cavern walls. :Goblins and hooded folk alike drop what they're doing to rush toward exit tunnels or jump into portals popping up here and there. :The ground rumbles underfoot as a choking black gas begins to seep into the cavern. :61% chance: :* You pack your things and hurry toward the nearest exit. You stop to assist an old enfeebled goblin, lifting him over your shoulder for safety. :* You pack your things and hurry toward the nearest exit, the black gas encroaching ever closer. :39% chance: ::A panicking rat-beast barrels down the street, knocking you into a goblin portal! ::The Dealer moves the player to a random Encounter Card. :Encounter ends. 3) Leave. :Encounter ends. Event (Hubie Token 3) Green lanterns cast the streets of Goblin Town in an uneasy light. "There!" Hubie grabs your arm and points down at the underground lake. A colossal shape lurks in the murky depths. "The Wyrm, it's already here!" You took Hubie to his desired Encounter! "Excuse me!" Hubie squeaks at passing goblins and other peculiar characters scattered throughout the crowd. "You have to leave! The Great Wyrm is here!" His cries go unheeded. 1) Grab a passing goblin and shake them. :You grab a goblin hurrying past. He is hugging a huge, scaly egg. :Before you can even begin to warn him, he wriggles free from your grasp and disappears into the crowd. 2) Shout at the crowd yourself. The goblins are preoccupied with the strange errands that keep the city in motion - two shouting voices are merely lost in the crowd. It is no use. "Wait I know!" Hubie squeaks. "The Big Horn! We can use it to warn everybody!" You see the impressive instrument over by the lake. "We have to get to it before it's too late!" The path down to the black lake stretches before you, a tangle of twisting streets and bustling goblins. 1) Head through the covered market. :You follow the smell of butter and roasting chestnuts. :Goblins of various shapes and textures peddle their strange wares. You dodge a glittering fish being flung at your head from a particularly exuberant stall-keep. :As you hurry onward, the seething bustle of the crowd slowly becomes more congested until it comes to a dead stall. :A) Throw an armful of food at the mob. (Lose 5 Food) ::The goblins rush to grab the pies splattered across the cobblestones. ::The crowd parts and you are able to squeeze through. ::The player loses 5 Food. :B) Smash the bakery window. (Dice Target 14) ::Dice Gambit (Target: 14) ::Success :::(see below) ::Failure :::The window breaks more readily than you expected. Shards of glass explode into the street, scattering the crowd. You ease a particularly large sliver out of the meat of your shoulder. :::The player draws 2 Life Pain Cards. ::The basket-wielding goblins rush through the broken glass to get to the delicious baked goods within. 2) Head through the housing district. :You take the right street through the jumble of ramshackle towers that comprise the housing district. :You hurry through the seething bustle of goblins, dodging laundry being inexplicably thrown onto the street from windows above you. :"Hello!" An elderly goblin clutching a wooden tub full of blood and fruits steps into your path. "I can't finish my laundry without some more human blood." :A) Throw some coins at the elderly goblin. (Lose 10 Gold) ::The player loses 10 Gold. ::With no time to lose, you throw a handful of coins at the wrinkled goblin. He immediately flings his tub of bloodied fruit aside and leaps at the gold. :B) Help the elderly goblin with his laundry. (Draw 2 Life Pain Cards) ::"Thank you, you've given an old goblin a reason to live." The elderly goblin bows as he stabs your calf, draining a good pint of your blood. ::The player draws 2 Life Pain Cards. ::After bandaging your wound with a kiss. the elderly goblin waves you on with a package of warm, sweet-smelling breads wrapped in leaves. ::The player draws 1 Food Gain Card. You escape the bedlam of the district into a sudden pocket of quiet. You are in a courtyard of sorts. A dense forest of twisted branches and strangling ivy crowds the path, leaving only two avenues forward. Bells hang from the crumbling archways, tinkling in some phantom breeze. You are completely alone here. Even Hubie has vanished. 1) Search for Hubie in the flower garden to your left. :"Beware," a voice whispers from somewhere in the dark treetops. "...only the wisps can survive this place for long." :Though unnerved, you continue on the path. :The left path leads to a small, neat garden. On a blanket of blue Forget-Me-Nots, framed by a circle of red poppies, lies Hubie, fast asleep. :You gently shake him awake, lifting him to his feet and back onto the path. :Hubie's hand finds yours and you continue along the eerie path. You yawn. How long have you been her? :With a sudden tightening of his grip, Hubie points in terror at a small shape on the dimly-lit path ahead. :...it's another Hubie. He'l lying asleep on the stone. :Your Hubie approaches him cautiously, then pokes him in the eye. He wakes with a start. :The twin Hubies squeak in fear at their doppelganger. :Your vision blurs. The goblins implore you in stereo, "You have to choose the real me!" :A) Choose the Hubie you found in the garden. ::You grab the Hubie you found in the garden and run. :B) Choose the Hubie you found on the path. ::You grab the Hubie you found on the path and run. :You hear an otherworldly giggling. You look to your companion and instead see a small ghostly figure clutching your hand. A wisp! :The spectre grins malevolently and tightens its grip, sending a chill up your arm. :The player draws 2 Life Pain Cards. :Suddenly, a shoe bounces off the wisp's head - it's Hubie, here to save the day! :The spectre hisses and fades into the fog. :Hubie tugs your sleeve and leads you back to the path. 2) Search for Hubie in the graveyard to your right. :(insert text here) 3) Go back the way you came. :You turn around and are faced with a stone wall. :A message is etched into the stone: "Wrong way, go back." As abruptly as you had left it, you find yourself once again among the bustle of Goblin Town. The haunted courtyard is nowhere to be seen. Hubie drags you onward. You stand at the top of a steep hill, clear of obstructions. At the base, far below, waits the Big Horn. 1) Hurry down the path. (Draw 2 Life Pain Cards) :In your rush, you inevitably trip and fall, barreling down the hill. You finally come to rest in the middle of an iced-sherbert stall. :The player draws 2 Life Pain Cards. 2) Look for something to use as a sled. (Chance Cards) :Chance Cards Gambit (1 Huge Success, 1 Success, 1 Failure, 1 Huge Failure) (Medium) :Huge Success ::You search a nearby junkpile and unearth a wheeled bathtub. ::As you zip down the hillside, bystanders cheer and throw gifts in admiration of your wondrous vehicle. ::The player draws 1 Gain Card. :Success ::You unearth an old door from a nearby junkpile. You ride it down the hillside with Hubie on your back. :Failure ::You search a nearby junkpile but find nothing of use. ::The player must hurry down the path. :Huge Failure ::What you think is the perfect plank of wood to slide on turns out to be the home of a family of churtles. ::They pursue you down the hillside, snapping at your ankles with their powerful beaks. ::The player draws 2 Life Pain Cards. ::The player must hurry down the path. You reach the base of the hill - the Big Horn is but a few feet away. The boardwalk is surprisingly picturesque - the goblinfolk must be proud of it. In the water, the impossibly huge shape suddenly convulses, sending a wave crashing down on the shore. Nobody else seems to notice. There is a rumble from deep within the lake. You exchange a look with Hubie - there's no more time! With a nod, the goblin leapfrogs off your shoulders and onto the Big Horn. Hubie presses his mouth to the horn and blows. The sound rumbles around the curves of the instrument before erupting from the horn and reverberating across the lake. A heavy silence falls upon Goblin Town. The ground shifts underfoot. Following a tremendous crash, you watch as the city's great mountain of gold collapses and disappears down a fissure in the earth. A collective gasp sounds out across Goblin Town. "Halt!" In the stunned silence the voice rings out clear and true. You turn to see a serious goblin with exceedingly long sleeves pointing at Hubie. "Did you blow that horn? Explain yourself." Hubie falls into a trembling mess. He points at the shape in the river and exclaims, "The Great Wyrm!" "Nonsense!" says the accusatory goblin. "That's merely a visiting dignitary from the Lower Reaches! You insult him! Not only that, the horn has destroyed our daily gold pile. You must be punished." Goblins dangle from the windows and balconies, chittering excitedly at the development before them. The authoritative goblin approaches Hubie somberly. Your companion shakes like a leaf in his presence, head bowed. "Your hat, goblin-son." There is a shocked gasp from the crowd. Hubie watches, wide-eyed, as the long-sleeved goblin removes your companion's cloth cap and slowly eats it. The player gains Hubie's token. Hubie emits a choking sob and, desperately covering his bald little head with his hands, turns and runs off into the crowd. You eventually find him on the side of the road out of Goblin Town. He hugs his knees despondently. Goblins hurry past as if he were not there. A) Ask him to get up. :Hubie rubs his wrinkled face with a moist sleeve and climbs to his feet. He nods and follows you back to the surface. :Encounter ends. B) Hug him. :The goblin freezes as you gently embrace him. :With another wrenching sob, Hubie flings himself at you, making the strange squeaking and garbling which constitutes goblin crying. :You sit by the roadside, consoling your friend. The traffic continues in and out of Goblin Town, impassionately. :Encounter ends. Unlocked By Acquire the token for Follow the Goblin. Category:Encounters Category:Platinum Cards Category:Platinum Encounters Category:Chance Cards Gambits Category:Dice Gambits Category:Lose Life Category:Gain Gold